By: PepperjackCandy
Rating: PG13 (up to "second base" explicit, beyond that implied)
Disclaimer: It's J.K. Rowling's world. I just play in it.
Warning: This will be a slash story (Harry/Draco) eventually, though romantically-slashy, rather than erotically-slashy. Hence the PG-13 rating.
My deepest thanks to Rhysenn for the inspiration.
Also, I've decided to take a college-like approach to their school days. They have six classes total - two two-hour classes in the morning and two two-hour classes in the afternoon on Monday, Wednesday and Friday, and one three-hour class in the morning and one three-hour class in the afternoon on Tuesday and Thursday. It's the only way I could justify all of the hanging around after class and wandering around to greenhouses and things that the students at Hogwarts do.
And thank you to everyone who reviewed chapter 1. I hope you approve of this. .
And, yes, I know this is both Chapter 2 and Chapter 3! 8-)
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Chapter 2 - The Solution
After breakfast, Ron and Harry hurried to the dungeon for Potions with Snape. The room was practically filled when they got there, so they had to sit at the front of the room.
"Great." Ron said. "Just great. Now Snape'll be sure to call on us."
"Serves you right for running late." Hermione sniped from her seat next to Neville. They had decided to try sitting next to each other in Potions, in hopes that Hermione's extraordinary scholastic ability would counterbalance Neville's exceeding bad luck.
Soon after, Snape swept into the room. "Greetings." He addressed the class. "I trust you all had a pleasant term break?"
His cold black eyes darted from one table to the next, taking in Harry and Ron first, then over to two Slytherins that Harry didn't know, then back a row to Hermione and Neville. Occasionally, however, his eyes would be inescapably drawn to the empty seat in the midsts of Crabbe, Goyle and Pansy Parkinson.
After he finished his introductory speech and initial survey of the class, he continued speaking. "The first potion this term will take several weeks to prepare. Which will give some of you," he looked directly at Neville," plenty of time to find and rectify your mistakes."
"Some of you who aspire to be aurors." Smirking, he looked at Harry, "Might find this potion to be helpful when confronted with Muggle technology. It's a universal solvent."
He cleared his throat to still the mumbling that this announcement had inspired. "According to the laws of alchemy, of course, a universal solvent is a bad idea; for what do you store it in?" He offered the class a cold smile. "But this one is different. We tested it extensively over the break, and it does not become active until the final ingredient is added, and only stays active for as long as you keep the light of your wand on it."
He continued with an hour-long lecture on the history, ethics, uses and pitfalls of universal solvents, and then introduced the laboratory portion of the Potions class. "To begin today's portion of the potion, you will need Whomping Willow sap, don't worry, you won't have to go out and get your own, there's plenty for everyone here," he held up a beaker, "unless you mess up, and then you'll have to start over with fresh tomorrow." He added with a cold smile at Neville.
"The other ingredient you'll need will be scarab beetle feet." He held up a jar full of tiny black dots.
Snape withdrew to his desk, where he began writing, while the students hurried to the front of the room to get their supplies. After everyone had returned to their seats and begun working, Snape began walking the aisles, watching the students at work, his eyes still drawn to Draco's empty seat.
"*Anti*-clockwise, Parkinson. You're supposed to stir it anti-clockwise."
Snape paced onwards, making small corrections to several students' works. Then he reached Hermione and Neville. "Longbottom! I said *scarab* beetle feet, not *ladybird* beetle feet! I thought that Granger would keep you from making these kind of bonehead mistakes, but," he sighed, "I guess not."
"Now look here, Professor Snape!" Hermione stood up, facing Snape down. "I got those myself out of the very same jar as everyone else did!"
"Hermione," Neville gently tugged at her sleeve.
"Well, Miss Granger," Snape said with a cold civility. "I cannot explain that, because those are clearly ladybird beetle feet!"
"Hermione," Neville attempted again.
"What?!?" Hermione rounded on her lab partner.
"I think he's right. See?" Neville held up a cauldron for her to see.
Hermione stared down into the greenish-brown liquid. "That's the wrong color."
"No, Hermione. It's the right color. Ours," he indicated their cauldron, with its reddish-brown liquid, "is the wrong color."
Hermione blushed a fire-engine red, then sat down without another word
Snape looked down at her and said calmly. "Five points from Gryffindor for insubordination, Granger."
After class, Harry, Hermione, Neville and Ron left the classroom together. Hermione was practically in tears. "I don't know what happened." She said. "I *know* I got those out of the correct jar. I just *know* it!"
"It's all right, Hermione," Neville said, "that sort of thing happens to me all the time." He shrugged resignedly. "You thought you could help, but I guess you can't."
Silence descended on the quartet for a moment. Then Ron broke the silence. "What I want to know is how you're going to get whomping willow sap before tomorrow."
"Don't remind me." Hermione moaned.
"I've got an idea." Harry, who had been silently thinking about Snape's preoccupation with Malfoy's empty chair, finally broke his silence. "Let's meet in the Gryffindor common room before lunch, and we can talk about it then."
The foursome split up then, Hermione to Arithmancy, Ron to Divination, Harry and Neville, to an introductory meeting for students considering internships in Hogsmeade.
"Why are you going?" Harry asked, making conversation.
"Eh. You know, career choices aren't too broad for a near-squib like me. I figure that if I don't want to end up at a desk job, I'd better start looking at my choices. How about you? I mean, it's not like *your* choices are limited."
Harry shrugged. "That's just it. I could be anything I want to be. But I was raised among Muggles, and have no idea what the choices are."
"But what about becoming a professional Quidditch player? Most everyone thinks that's what you're going to do anyway."
"That's not really what I want to do, I don't think. I'd much rather do something to help people."
By then, they'd reached the classroom where the meeting was to be held. Harry quickly scanned the faces in the room, and aside from a few nodding acquaintances, didn't recognize anyone.
They stepped into the room, and immediately, all of the students began whispering.
"Harry?" Neville asked. "What's going on?"
"I don't know. Harry shrugged, then they saw it. On the board at the front of the room, was a huge heart with the initials "G.W. + N.L." written in it. Only then the "N.L." had been crossed out, and two huge question marks were written next to them.
Harry immediately put together what was going on. Peeves had somehow decided to start some kind of rumor about there being some difficulty between Ginny and Neville. Harry would have recognized the school poltergeist's handiwork anywhere.
Neville, meanwhile, was doing a slow burn.
"Neville, it's just one of Peeves's pranks." Harry reassured his friend while guiding him to a pair of empty chairs.
Just then, a teacher that Harry had never had before walked into the room. She looked at the board, heaved a huge sigh, mumbled, "Peeves!" and then touched her wand to the board, said "Induco!" and the heart with its initials disappeared.
The teacher turned and faced the students. "Most of you have never met me. I am Professor Officium, and I help seventh-year students who are undecided about their career choices make the best decisions for themselves. Now, we will be working with you all at a rate of about five per day, in alphabetical order unless . . ." her eyes scanned down the scroll listing the students who had signed up for this course. "Longbottom? Neville Longbottom?"
Neville said, quietly, "Here, Ma'am."
She sighed. "We'll be starting with you. And then we'll need Adams, Apricot, Banks, and Caldicott. For everyone else, you will receive an owl on the morning of your meeting with us. That will be all."
As if they had somehow managed to Disapparate, most of the students were gone from the room. All except the five that Professor Officium had named, and Harry. Harry leaned over to his red-faced friend. "Do you need me to stay here with you?" He asked.
Neville, trying to hold of humiliation tears back, shook his head. "No. Thanks. I'm all right."
"Well," Harry offered. "If you need anything, you know where to find me. All right?"
Neville nodded and gave Harry a watery smile. "Thanks."
Harry spent the rest of the hour in the Gryffindor common room waiting for Neville, Ron and Hermione to return from their classes.
First to arrive was Neville. "Hey." He smiled at Harry.
"So? How'd it go?"
"Actually, they think they might have found something for me to try right away." He paused. "Working with Madame Pomfrey in the hospital wing."
"Really?"
"Yeah." Neville sat down in the chair next to Harry's. "Most of what Madame Pomfrey does, she does with herbs and talismans and things. She only uses her innate magic for the really desperate situations, like when she grew your bones back."
"Don't remind me." Harry grimaced, remembering the pain of having his bones dissolved and then replaced.
"I probably won't ever be in charge, since I'm almost a squib, but as long as there's a fully-qualified witch or wizard on staff, I should do pretty well. They hope." He rolled his eyes good-naturedly.
Just then, Ginny came through the common room. "Hi!" She greeted Neville and Harry, sitting down next to Neville so that they were squeezed together into the one chair. Neville wrapped his arm around her shoulders. "What're you guys talking about?"
Not wanting to embarrass Neville, Harry remained silent, allowing his friend to field this question.
"I sort of mucked up the potion we were making in Potions this morning, and so we've got to figure out how to get the ingredient we need to re-do it tomorrow." Neville matter-of-factly told his girlfriend.
"Oh." Ginny responded simply. "Can I help?"
Harry and Neville looked at each other, and when neither indicated an objection, Neville said, "Of course you can," and kissed her.
Ron and Hermione arrived then, and took a seat in two other chairs near Harry, Neville and Ginny.
"So," Ron began. "What's this big plan you've got for getting the Whomping Willow sap?"
"Well, it's not a big plan. I just didn't want to discuss this where Snape could hear." He paused and leaned forward, causing the other four to lean forward as well. "I say we use the Marauders' Map."
Chapter 3 -- Rumors
Harry leaned forward, causing the other four to lean forward as well. "I say we use the Marauders' Map."
Ron's face broke out into a wide grin. "The Marauders' Map! Perfect!"
"I'm not so sure that would be a good idea, Harry." Hermione added dubiously.
Ginny's and Neville's faces were studies in confusion. "What's the Marauders' Map?" Neville asked before Ginny had a chance to.
"It's a map my father and . . ." he paused while he debated whether to bring Remus, Sirius and Peter into it by name, "his friends made while they were students here at Hogwarts. It normally looks like a blank piece of parchment, but when you speak the correct words over it, it turns into this map that has the whole school laid out, secret passages and all, and has little dots on it indicating where everyone in the school is. So you can get in and out of the school without being discovered." He carefully omitted the fact that on more than one occasion, he'd used the map specifically to avoid Neville.
Ginny's eyes were wide with delight. "Wow! I can't wait to see it!"
"So, I figured that tonight, after supper, we can use the Map to get down into one of the secret passages that's blocked off by the Willow . . ."
"And then collect the sap from down underground, where we'll be safe!" Hermione finished for him. "Brilliant! Though," she looked dubiously from one face to another, "there's five of us. Isn't that an awful lot to go sneaking around at night?"
Harry shrugged. "We have more lookouts that way. I've gotten caught a couple of times, even with the map, because I just *can't* be paying attention to everything at once."
"I'll stay behind." Ron and Ginny offered simultaneously.
Harry looked from one Weasley sibling to the other. "Are you both sure?"
Ron and Ginny nodded. "After all," Ginny said, "you'll need someone to convince anyone looking for you that you're all too busy to be disturbed."
"Good point." Neville added, speaking to Ginny. "You can vouch for me, and Ron can vouch for Harry and Hermione."
"So then it's decided. After supper, Ron and Ginny will sit here in the common room to distract anyone looking for us, and Neville, Hermione and I will go down to the Willow to get the sap." Harry concluded.
Neville laughed. "I can't *wait* to see the look on Snape's face when we come in with Whomping Willow sap tomorrow morning!"
* * *
After lunch, the seventh-year Gryffindors had their Care of Magical Creatures class. Hagrid was more affable than usual, and Harry noticed that, much like Snape, Hagrid's eyes kept glancing at Crabbe, Goyle and Pansy, only instead of concern, Harry saw relief in Hagrid's eyes.
After Hagrid had explained that, beginning the next day, they'd be having visitors in for the rest of term, who would be bringing in magical creatures that are normally illegal under British wizarding law. "But don't worry." He added with a pointed glance in the direction of Crabbe, Goyle, Pansy and the absent Draco, "I have a certificate of clearance from the Ministry to bring all of the animals into the country."
After class, Harry, Ron, Hermione and Neville hung around to talk to Hagrid for a few minutes. After the half-giant had given each of them a huge bear hug, he asked, "I was afraid you all had outgrown coming to visit me, bein' seventh years and all."
"Of course not, Hagrid," Harry responded. "It's just that . . . you know, I had some stuff on my mind last night that I needed to think about something, and Ron had to get over the shock of being named Head Boy." He grinned at his friend.
"At least until Malfoy gets back." Ron sighed.
After they'd left Hagrid, the foursome split up again, this time Harry and Ron decided that after hearing Hermione gush about her Arithmancy classes for four years, they'd take a chance on an introductory Arithmancy course themselves.
All the way there, Harry was dogged with the feeling that he was being watched. "Ron," he whispered to his friend, "is someone watching me?"
Ron rolled his eyes. "Everyone's watching you, Harry. You, after all, are the Quidditch hero. The Boy Who Lived. Everyone in school who doesn't want to *be* you, wants to date you."
"And which are you?" Harry joked, but at the brief flash of discomfort in Ron's eyes, he immediately regretted the comment.
"Are you really still jealous of me?" He asked.
Ron shook his head. "Not really. I mean, only when I really think about it, you know? Like when you insist that everyone's watching you."
"Not everyone." Harry insisted. "Just . . . someone. Like they're talking about me or something."
Ron shook his head. "Well, I'll just have to give you the benefit of the doubt on this one. If you say they're talking about you, well, maybe they are."
Arithmancy class was just as much fun as Hermione always said it was. It turned out to be somewhat like what Harry's Aunt Petunia had always called "numerology," only with real magic. Instead of a dry lecture with a mind-boggling assortment of numbers, as they had expected, they spent the two-hour period working up the names of the students in the class using Arithmancy. "Remember," their teacher, Professor Ducat, warned them in her final comments, "these numbers, by themselves, are meaningless. As we will see later in this course, in order to glean any significance from them whatsoever, you will need other numbers to add, multiply, or compare these numbers to."
The Arithmancy class let out, and Harry and Ron headed down to the Great Hall for supper. This time, they were so involved in trying to figure out the number of their friends' names that Harry neither noticed nor cared if people were talking about him.
This, however, was to be a severe drawback, for if he had noticed, he might have had some warning when they entered the great hall and Neville came up and socked him right in the stomach.
As Harry doubled over in pain, Neville yelled, "It's bad enough that Ron can't get anywhere with Hermione because of you! But now you're putting the moves on Ginny! I just won't have it!"
Harry stood up, "Neville, what are you . . ." He didn't get any further than that, because Neville socked him again, this time a roundhouse punch to his face.
Harry collapsed on the floor again.
"Neville! Have you gone insane? What's gotten into you?" Ron yelled as he restrained the normally-calm Neville.
"Come on! Everyone knows what's going on between him and Ginny!" Neville indicated Harry with a disdainful shake of his head. "It's all over the school."
Ginny appeared from between the onlookers and rushed to Harry's side. "Harry! What's going . . . Neville?" She looked up into her boyfriend's furious, flushed face. "What's going on?"
Neville squirmed from Ron's grasp and looked like he was about to go for Harry again, but Ginny threw herself in between the two men. "Neville!" She yelled above the din. "Please stop it!"
"Of course you want to protect your boyfriend!" Neville yelled, his face growing even redder, if that was at all possible.
"My what?" Ginny placed her hands on Neville's shoulders, looking directly into his eyes. "Please, Neville. Calm down. I want to talk to you."
Ron, meanwhile, had moved to help Harry up off of the floor.
Ginny's intervention seemed to have taken some of the anger out of Neville. He continued glaring at Harry, but allowed Ginny to direct him to the Gryffindor table.
Just then, McGonagall came in. "Longbottom! Come here!" She called out sharply.
Neville stood, looking sheepish. "Yes, Ma'am." He walked over to her.
McGonagall looked at Ron. "Take him up to the hospital wing."
"But I'm all right, Professor McGonagall." Harry protested, but when McGonagall gave him her best sharp look, he went quietly as Ron led him out of the room.
Half an hour and one bruise-healing charm later, Neville and Ginny came up to the hospital wing to see Harry.
"Sorry." Neville said sheepishly. "I should have known that neither one of you," he looked from Harry to Ginny, "would do anything like that to me, but since I'd heard it from several people, and then there was another heart with *your* initials and Ginny's in it in my next class . . ."
"Don't worry about it." Harry gave Neville a lopsided smile. "If nothing else, I guess I figured out that the feeling I've been having all day that people are talking about me was right, and now I know what they were saying."
"I also cost Gryffindor fifty points. And possibly messed up my internship with Madam Pomfrey."
Just then, the witch in question came around the corner. "Ah. *There* you are, Mr. Longbottom." She said with pursed lips.
"Yes, Ma'am."
"I had a little talk with Professor McGonagall about your behavior this afternoon."
Neville's face fell a little farther. "Yes, Ma'am."
"And Professor McGonagall seems to be of the impression that I should give you another chance." Her tone gave no indication whether she agreed with McGonagall's opinion. "And, since you have no history of getting into trouble, *and* because all of the faculty have also heard the rumors about Mr. Potter and Miss Weasley, I have to agree with her. You may start working here with me tomorrow morning."
"Tomorrow? But what about Herbology?"
"You'll be transferred to the Herbology class with the Slytherins and Ravenclaws, on Monday, Wednesday and Friday mornings."
Neville blanched at this. "With the Slytherins?"
"Come on," Ginny said in her most cheerful tone, "you're an absolute brain at Herbology. You'll run rings 'round the Slytherins *and* the Ravenclaws. Give 'em a reason to respect you."
"You think so?" Neville asked hopefully.
"I know so." Ginny affirmed, kissing him briefly on the lips.
* * *
After they had finished the dinner that Madam Pomfrey had the house-elves send up, the five Gryffindors returned to the Gryffindor common room. Or, at least, they returned to the hallway outside the Gryffindor common room.
"No." The fat lady said flatly when Ron gave the password. "Not as long as *he* is with you." She looked directly at Harry.
"Why not?" Ron demanded.
"Because I know that he is trying to come between Mr. Longbottom and Miss Weasley." She responded.
"Oh, come on," Harry insisted. "You can't mean that you believe that ridiculous rumor?"
"Believe it? Of course I do. Heard it from your own mouths, I did."
"What?" Neville responded.
Simultaneously, Harry said, "When?"
"Last night, the two of you were talking about a secret you were keeping from the others."
Harry's and Ginny's eyes widened, and they looked at each other.
"Oh!" Ginny covered her mouth to hide the way she gaped in surprise. "We weren't talking about that. It was another secret entirely."
"Mm-hmmm." The fat lady said in a tone fully of skepticism.
"Honestly." Ginny insisted. She looked from the fat lady to Neville. "Please. Harry and I will explain everything once we're inside, and if he accepts it," she looked back to the fat lady, "will you forget that it ever happened?"
The fat lady sighed. "I guess so." She responded as she opened to allow the Gryffindors to pass inside to their common room.